


that would be enough

by alljustrunaways



Category: Brooklyn Nine-Nine (TV)
Genre: F/M, Hurt/Comfort, Pregnancy, inspired by the new ep and also hamilton and also the office, it's a lil sad but then it's fluff, so basically just a lot of emotions
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-07
Updated: 2020-02-07
Packaged: 2021-02-27 21:21:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,196
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22602391
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alljustrunaways/pseuds/alljustrunaways
Summary: It’s an amazing opportunity and, frankly, one that he would take with no hesitation if it weren’t for his incredible, beautiful wife and the baby she has been growing inside her for three months. That’s a pretty big ‘if’.(in which jake gets offered another fbi job and he has a seemingly impossible decision to make - which maybe isn't really so difficult after all.)
Relationships: Jake Peralta/Amy Santiago
Comments: 14
Kudos: 169





	that would be enough

**Author's Note:**

> hello again ladiez!!! obv my inspiration to write came back as soon as b99 did, which is why i wrote this at 2am last night instead of getting some much-needed sleep but dare i say worth it!
> 
> this is heavily inspired by listening to hamilton's that would be enough on a loop (philippa soo is a goddess and lmm is our generation's sondheim/shakespeare) and also, for representation of better and more faithful husbands, by that one scene from the office where jim shows pam that video with all the clips of them set to a snow patrol song bc i cry every time

After working a double, during which he arrested a major drug kingpin and helped Rosa and Charles find a suspect in their homicide case, Jake is: A) feeling pretty pleased with himself, and B) _more_ than ready to get home to his wife and bring her some Polish comfort food (they’ve ordered from them so much lately that they’re on a first name basis with their delivery guy).

It’s super unlike him that he even stops to check his email on his way out of the precinct, but he’s so used to waiting for Amy to do it that it’s become a habit at this point. Aside from an exciting announcement about an upcoming sneaker sale at an outlet mall upstate, there’s only one unopened item in his inbox. It’s an encrypted message from Captain Kim, whom he hasn’t spoken to since she finally accepted his long series of apology emails (accompanied by a fruit basket, Amy’s suggestion) and the subject line simply reads _Job Opportunity_.

It’s brief, but the gist is simple: there’s an undercover operation in the works, they think he’s the right person for the job, it would be a great opportunity and an excellent way for him to get his foot in the door for a potential higher-up position in the FBI. The rest is a little more murky - it’s potentially very dangerous (she can’t go into detail in an email, obviously, but he’s willing to bet it’s got something to do with one of the crime families that have been gradually moving their operations from Manhattan into Brooklyn). It could also take months. She urges him to take time to seriously consider the position, and to contact her as soon as he comes to a decision.

It’s an amazing opportunity and, frankly, one that he would take with no hesitation _if_ it weren’t for his incredible, beautiful wife and the baby she has been growing inside her for three months. That’s a pretty big ‘if’.

He’s so lost in his own thoughts for the entirety of his commute home that he actually forgets to pick up dinner, which he realizes the moment he opens the door and sees Amy reclined on the couch reading her third pregnancy book of the week, all four of their designated “living room blankets” draped over her.

“Oh my god, I forgot the food,” he blurts out, startling Amy and making her drop the book on her lap. “I’ll just run back out and grab it, sorry, I-”

“Babe, wait-” She jumps up from her perch on the couch and carefully places the book on the coffee table. As she crosses the room to meet him in the doorway, his eyes flit to her barely noticeable but steadily growing baby bump. _Their baby_. Their baby that _needs_ him. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” he mutters, avoiding her gaze as he shifts back and forth. “I just forgot the food so I’m just gonna head out real quick-”

“We can just order, Jake, I can wait,” she assures him with a warm smile. Pregnant Amy is usually - to put it in the most favourable term possible - _less_ than patient when it comes to food, so he can tell right away that she either really missed him or can tell something’s bothering him.

She wraps her arms around his neck and leans up onto her tiptoes to kiss him hello, and judging by the intensity of her kiss and how tightly she’s squeezing him he figures it was the first one and he’s in the clear of having to talk about _all that_ for at least a few minutes.

“Did something happen at work, babe?”

_Damn it_ , so close.

“Why do you ask?”

“You’re super tense,” she frowns, rubbing his shoulders as she shifts back down to her normal height. “And you won’t look me in the eye.”

She places her hand on his cheek and gently guides his gaze to hers, forcing him to make eye contact with her, and some combination of her touch and the impossibly tender, concerned look she’s giving him causes him to cave instantly.

“Um, can we talk?” He gestures to the couch, where her mountain of blankets have been abandoned, and she nods quickly.

They settle in on the comfortable sofa, the first purchase they made together when her apartment became theirs. They’ve had god-knows-how-many important conversations and lazy Sunday afternoon cuddles and heated post-date makeout sessions when they just couldn’t make it all the way to the bedroom on this couch. He’s willing to bet that they conceived their child on this couch three months ago, though an argument could be made for the shower that morning or their bed later that evening as well.

Amy tucks her legs behind her and turns to face him, reaching out to rest a hand on his thigh and waiting for him to speak.

“Remember how Captain Kim mentioned a potential FBI liaison position for me?”

Amy nods and sits up straighter, her eyes brightening. “Did the FBI offer you a job?”

“Not exactly.” He scratches his head, searching for the right words. “Captain Kim recommended me for an undercover mission with the FBI. She made it seem like - uh, if it went well I could be offered something more permanent with them.”

Amy pauses for a moment, clearly deep in thought. “That could be life-changing.”

“I know, but Ames, it, um-” He sighs. “The job sounds a lot like last time I went undercover.”

Her grip on his thigh seems to tighten, perhaps subconsciously, as she stares fixedly at the book left forgotten on the coffee table. He can imagine her train of thoughts; last time he went undercover it was six months with an incredibly dangerous crime family and he could’ve died _a bunch_ of times. They may not have been together at the time, but their mutual yearning was only amplified by the painfully long separation. They’ve been no strangers to painfully long separations since - god, he would do _anything_ to have every night he spent in the Florida heat or a chilly jail cell back and get to relive each one of them in her arms instead.

He reaches out to grab her hand with both of his. “Ames-”

Before he can get any further, she shrugs him off and walks purposefully towards their bedroom. He’s terrified he’s going to hear the sound of a slamming door that he associates so strongly with being a helpless kid watching his parents’ relationship fall apart and _never_ connects to his own marriage, but it never comes.

She returns moments later with her trusty notebook and a pen in hand, sitting back down next to him and beginning to write.

“What are you doing?”

She doesn’t look up at him. “It’s an important decision. We need a pro/con list.”

Jake sighs. “Honey, can we just talk about it?”

“We are talking about it,” she deadpans. “We’ll start with the easy stuff. Pro: you could get your dream job.”

As soon as she’s done writing, Amy looks over to him, which he takes to mean that it’s now his turn.

“Okay. Con: I could be gone for three to six months, a.k.a. when you could literally be _giving birth_ to our child.”

“But you _could_ do it in three,” she counters. “Pro: you could make more money at a new job, which we obviously need more than ever.”

“Con: I could mess up the job somehow and not be recommended for the new position.”

Amy doesn’t write that one down, and he raises an eyebrow.

“It wouldn’t happen, you’re too good at your job.”

His heart swells at her quiet but reverent tone, and she doesn’t pull away when he reaches to grab her hand again.

“Okay, your turn, then,” he prompts.

She stares at the paper intently, and her hand holding the pen begins to tremble as her gaze shifts over to the con column. He almost knows what she’s going to say before she says it, because it’s only natural for the mind to go to the worst-case scenario in situations like these. Still, it’s hard for him to stomach the mere thought of leaving her all alone, especially _now_.

“You could get hurt,” she mumbles shakily under her breath. Her watering eyes begin to shed fully-formed tears, falling steadily on her grey t-shirt. “I-I could lose-I could _lose_ you-”

She’s cut off by a small sob, her fists clenching around the material of the blanket as her entire body starts to shake. Amy crying isn’t rare, and pregnant Amy crying is an even more frequent occurrence, but seeing her cry over anything more than a spilled yogurt cup is too much for him to take. Jake’s heart feels like it’s cracking in two, but his instincts overpower his own sadness and he reaches for her immediately. She falls into his chest the moment his hands reach her and her sobs increase in volume as she clutches at his shirt.

“That’s never gonna happen, baby,” he whispers against her hair in-between quick, healing kisses everywhere his lips can reach. “Shh, you’re not gonna lose me.”

“You - you can’t promise that.”

“I _am_ promising you that. I’m gonna call Captain Kim first thing Monday morning and respectfully decline the offer. I’m sure she’ll understand.”

She pulls away from him, shaking her head quickly.

“I can’t ask you to do that. It’s too good of an opportunity, being a detective won’t be enough for you forever and this job is your dream-”

“You didn’t ask me to, Ames, and it’s not. You and our little lemon-sized-as-of-this-morning baby are my dream, okay? You’re not just enough, you’re everything - _more_ than everything I could have _ever_ dreamed of. Okay?”

Amy wipes her tears away, but there are already new ones forming in her eyes. She looks at him with so much trust, and he knows now, even more than he did five seconds ago, that he could never put himself in harm’s way again unless absolutely necessary.

She finally cracks a small smile, nodding slowly.

“More than everything of which you could ever have dreamt.”

Jake frowns. “Huh?”

“You ended a sentence with a proposition. It should be ‘more than everything of which you could ever have dreamt.’”

He laughs softly, cupping her face and wiping the remaining tears away. “That’s my girl.”

She tucks herself back into his embrace and squeezes his arm tightly as the other one wraps around her waist.

“Are you sure about this?”

Jake nods against her head, his free hand stroking her hair.

“I think I kind of knew what my answer was as soon as I read the email. I used to get so excited about these crazy life-or-death missions, but now…”

“No more ’eyes closed, head first, can’t lose?’” she supplies, smiling up at him.

The memory of walking away from her in a parking lot, the weight of his confession hanging in the air as he left knowing he might never see her again, stings a bit. He wishes he could tell that version of himself that had never really experienced true love and happiness how much he would have to live for someday.

“Who woulda thought that guy would be a _dad_?” Jake laughs.

Amy snuggles further into him, kissing the spot on his hoodie that rests over his heart. “You’re gonna be the best dad. I love you so much.”

He’s filled with a surge of warmth, both from her embrace and words of love, and the knowledge that he _will_ do everything in his power to be the best dad. He will stick around and he will do everything in his power to make their child as happy as they can be and he will give every ounce of unconditional love and support in his body. He will be better than his father, better than his past self, better every day than he was the day before.

“I love you,” he kisses her cheek, “and you”, his hand grazes her belly (he’s been eagerly anticipating a kick, though she reminds him it could be weeks or even months before they feel anything), “ _so_ much.”

She shifts to properly kiss him, and he gladly welcomes it with a hand on her back pulling her closer and the other still tangled in her hair. When she pulls away and smiles at him, he feels like all the weight of the world has been lifted off his shoulders.

“Can we order dinner now?” she pleads, breaking the tranquility of the moment, but with good reason. “I’m actually starving.”

“Good idea, Tomak is going to get super worried if he doesn’t hear from us soon.”

He pulls his phone from his pocket and goes straight to his recent calls, ordering enough pierogis to feed a small army (or one pregnant Amy) and a couple of hot chocolates, and they seamlessly fall into their routine of selecting whatever they’re currently binging on Netflix (right now it’s The Crown), getting cozy, and waiting for Tomak’s arrival.

This, forever, will always be _more_ than enough for him.

**Author's Note:**

> hope u enjoyed, comments and kudos make me very happy <3


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